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On April 20, 2002 I married Stephen W. Carson after a 4-month courtship and 4-month engagement. Our marriage date marked for me almost five and one half years since I stopped dating, a decision I made at aged 23. Now I date almost every night – my husband! Dating became a rather disheartening and shallow way of finding a mate, and so I made a rather unprecedented decision to stop. I say unprecedented because, while I am not the first one to do this, I am one of the only people I know, except for my husband who had independently...

Today’s boy-girl scene on college campuses is a mess. Most young people don’t know how to develop satisfying relationships, and many get themselves into trouble with messy, mindless sex. As a solution, some critics, particularly religious ones, advocate a return to the concept of courtship, where young men and women don’t date, but rather get to know each other with the explicit goal of working toward marriage. But is shunning the institution of dating – of man and maid engaging in various activities with one another without the goal of marriage – the solution? The latest available research suggests that...

Self-confessed hapless singleton Adam Lusher reports on a new agency that aims to help men survive the difficult world of datingAll heads turn as the beautiful blonde walks into the wine bar. Waiters sneak admiring glances, while male patrons discreetly scan the bar for her companion - desperately hoping there isn't one. As she approaches, I feel poised, calm, attractive even. I think I manage to flash a winning smile. "Jennifer?" "Adam. Good to meet you at last. Now, engage my interest." I gulp. The ensuing conversation lasts five minutes. It feels like five years. I learn that Jennifer, last...

It's raining in New York, and in the cavernous gloom of Penn Station, thousands of travellers pour down the hallways, the rustle of their feet and the echo of the train announcements combining into a kind of rapid-heartbeat rhythm that might be more exciting if weren't such a cold and drizzly winter morning. The fluorescent ceiling exudes an olive glow that makes everyone look like they died two hours ago, and when the blonde woman seated by herself in the departure lounge looks up and sees a man looking at her, she sends him a hard, wary glance that says,...